The Story of ROXETTE’s “IT MUST HAVE BEEN LOVE”

“It Must Have Been Love” is EVERYONE’s favorite song and one of the most sensual, beautiful and memorable tunes that came out during the 80s (and then again in 1990). Not to mention that this is probably one of those timeless tracks that will never disappear from the airplay – it’s just the ultimate radio song! The Swedish pop/rock duo Roxette already had a few number one hits in the States before this song but it was “It Must Have Been Love” that cemented their position as the most beloved European duo of all time! As a person who comes from Europe I can definitely state that Marie and Per were and still are pretty big over here!! Europeans just adore them! Getting back to the song, I wanted to say a few words about it because regardless of how mainstream or commercial it became (mainly due to the fact that it became a soundtrack to the all-time-favorite American movie “Pretty Woman”), this song means a lot to me as I literally grew up listening to it. In addition to that, the lyrics remind me of someone and as painful as it is to listen to this tune, it’s also bringing me back to those days when I was a little innocent girl and had no idea how hard and hurtful love can be…

roxette-it-must-have-been-love

– “It Must Have Been Love” was written by Per Gessle – the main songwriter of Roxette and was released in 1987. Nothing major happened for the track before it was re-recorded and released on the soundtrack of “Pretty Woman” in 1990.

– The original tile of the song was “It Must Have Been Love (Christmas For The Broken Hearted)” and came out in 1987 as a Christmas single! The song also had a Christmas reference in the lyrics: “and it’s a hard Christmas day” which later on changed into “and it’s a hard winter’s day” when they recorded it for “Pretty Woman”.

“It Must Have Been Love (Christmas For The Broken Hearted)” VIDEO

– After the enormous success of “Pretty Woman”, the track conquered all the charts and was simply everywhere! It made almost half a billion dollars worldwide and not to mention that in 2014, Per got an award from BMI for the track’s five millionth radio play! The soundtrack of the movie also went on to be certified three times platinum by the RIAA!! To sum up, you must have it!

pretty-woman

– Let’s talk about the touching but painful lyrics… It’s a beautiful song to listen to, till the day you finally experience the story told in those words and believe me, the majority of people have experienced it (including myself)…And then, you realize that you should have fought harder and should’ve never let this person you loved walk away from you. This song is about regret – regret over the fact that somehow, you lost your love and now you are lonely, your heart is cold and you don’t know what to do… You wish for him/her to return back to you but it’s too late – all you can do is dream about those beautiful days. Life is just too cruel! (…and there we go, the tears are coming…)

“It Must Have Been Love” MUSIC VIDEO

…and this beautiful live performance I would like you guys to watch!

“It Must Have Been Love” Lyrics

Lay a whisper on my pillow,
Leave the winter on the ground.
I wake up lonely, there’s air of silence
In the bedroom and all around

Touch me now, I close my eyes and dream away.

It must have been love but it’s over now.
It must have been good but I lost it somehow.
It must have been love but it’s over now.
From the moment we touched, ’til the time had run out.

Make-believing we’re together
That I’m sheltered by your heart.
But in and outside I’ve turned to water
Like a teardrop in your palm.

And it’s a hard winter’s day, I dream away.

It must have been love but it’s over now.
It was all that I wanted, now I’m living without.
It must have been love but it’s over now,
It’s where the water flows, it’s where the wind blows.

It must have been love but it’s over now.
It must have been good but I lost it somehow.
It must have been love but it’s over now.
From the moment we touched, ’til the time had run out.

Yeah, it must have been love but it’s over now.
It was all that I wanted, now I’m living without.
It must have been love but it’s over now,
It’s where the water flows, it’s where the wind blows.


 

References:
“It Must Have Been Love” Lyrics, retrieved from http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/roxette/itmusthavebeenlove.html
“It Must Have Been Love” Official Wikipedia Page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Must_Have_Been_Love
P.S. I don’t own any audio or visual material used in this publication. All the rights and credits go to the owners and/publishers.
The publication expresses my personal opinion and in no way is trying to make a generalized statement. Please be kind and considerate when you read and/or comment.
Cheers~

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Velina

I'm a girl who wants to keep great rock music alive!

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